Coin saving books



Oct. 24, 1967 1-. c. WESTON COIN SAVING BOOKS Filed Sept. 21, 1966 N 0 RT 05 E NW E v P N A M M O H T ATTOR NEY S United States Patent 3,348,763 COIN SAVING BOOKS Thomas C. Weston, 11004 W. Copeland Ave., Hales Corners, Wis. 53130 Filed Sept. 21, 1966, Ser. No. 581,084 9 Claims. (Cl. 22992.9)

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A coin saving booklet formed of resilient plastic having coin-receiving pockets with an opening located above the center point of each pocket and being slightly shorter in length than the diameter of a coin, said opening being temporarily expandable while a coin is pushed into the pocket, and said openings resuming their original size after coins have been inserted in said pockets to yieldably retain the same therein. All of the coins mounted in said booklet can be simultaneously removed by inverting the booklet and sharply rapping its lower edge on a flat surface.

This invention relates to improvements in coin saving books, and more particularly to a new and improved coin booklet from which the coins can be quickly and easily removed by a bank teller or the like When said booklet is redeemed.

Coin books of the type herein concerned are frequently given to their customers by banks to provide a convenient means for collecting and saving a predetermined number of specified coins, as for example $3.00 or $5.00 worth of dimes, or quarters, or other denominations. Then, when the booklet is filled the customer returns it to the bank, where he may deposit the collected amount or convert it into bills, as he chooses. Such coin saving books are very popular with children as well as other depositors, but unfortunately when conventional coin books are brought into the bank the teller must manually remove each individual coin from its mounting in the book, which is a tedious and time-consuming job. With this in mind, the principal object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved coin book (or card) wherein all of the coins therein can be removed simultaneously, in an instant, thereby greatly speeding and facilitating the job of a bank teller or other person receiving the filled book.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved coin booklet which is so designed that coins may be easily inserted therein by the user, and wherein said coins are securely retained in said booklet and will not accidentally fall out.

A further object of the invention is to provide a coin book which is durable and long-lasting, and which can be reused a greater number of times than conventional coin saving books.

A further important object of the invention is to provide a coin book structure which is relatively inexpensive in design and construction.

Still further objects of the invention are to provide a new and improved coin book which is compact and can be conveniently carried on the person, which book is attractive in appearance, and which novel coin book is otherwise particularly well adapted for its intended purposes.

With the above and other objects in view, which other objects and advantages will become apparent hereinafter, the invention comprises the new and improved coin book hereinafter described and any and all modifications or equivalents thereof.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein there is shown one preferred embodiment of the invention, and wherein Patented Oct. 24, 1967 the same reference numerals designate the same parts in all of the views:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the improved coin book;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the coin book in an open condition;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view of said book;

FIG. 4 is a greatly enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view showing one of the coin-receiving compartments, said view being taken along line 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a similar vertical sectional view showing the booklet being deflected to permit the insertion of a coin into the coin-receiving pocket; and

FIG. 6 is a similar vertical sectional view showing a coin retained in said pocket.

Referring now more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawing, pictured therein is a $3.00 dime book illus- .trative of the type of coin saving book herein concerned.

As hereinabove mentioned, coin booklets of this general type are frequently given to their customers by banks and other financial institutions for the purpose of conveniently saving coins. Heretofore, however, such books have not been entirely satisfactory because the bank teller or other person receiving the book when it is redeemed must tediously remove each coin therefrom individually, which is a time-consuming task.

In the preferred form of the present invention the outer, cover portion 10 (FIG. 1) of the booklet is formed of a flexible sheet such as vinyl film or similar plastic material of any desired color, and may have the name and insignia of the bank or other institution imprinted thereon, or other desired indicia. For simplicity and clarity, said cover 10 is shown as a single ply sheet in the illustrated form of the invention (FIGS. 4, 5, 6). However, it is to be understood that said cover should be formed of two or more superposed sheets of material and the invention is by no means to be limited or confined in this respect.

Overlying the inner surface of the cover 10 is a sheet or liner 11 of clear flexible plastic or similar material (FIG. 2) which is heat sealed or otherwise united to said cover around the marginal edges 12 of the booklet, and desirably along the center fold line 13 thereof. If plasticized vinyl film is used as the cover 10 and liner 11, union can be effected by simple welding or heat fusion, said flexible liner or inner sheet 11 being free of the cover material 10 except around the edges and fold line. While plastic is preferred for said cover and liner members because of its durability, ease of fabrication, and relatively low cost, it is to be understood that other materials having the desired qualities of resiliency and flexibility could be utilized. In addition, although a double-leaf booket having a center fold line has been illus trated, within the intended scope of the invention it is also possible to design said coin saver in the form of a single, unfolded sheet or card, or to fold it in the form of a wallet or some other varied design, including a multileaf booklet, and the invention is not to be limited in this respect.

With the two overlying sheets of material 10-11 thus joined, as described, the illustrated coin saver may be folded along the center fold line 13 to the closed position of FIG. 1, or it may be arranged in the open, flat condition shown in FIG. 2. The booklet will normally remain' of coin-receiving compartments 14 are formed by said inner sheet 11 and cover on the inner face of the booklet in parallel rows as shown, although other arrangements are obviously possible. Said coin compartments are preferably circular in shape and are formed by sealing the inner sheet 11 to the cover 10, e.g., with a heat sealing die, around at least the major portion of the periphery of each compartment. The inner diameter of said coin compartments 14 is slightly larger than the diameter of the coin it is to receive in order to permit the insertion of a coin therein, but it cannot be too large or the coin will not be securely retained, as will be hereinafter seen.

While it has been found that welding or fusing the inner sheet 11 to the cover 10 to join the samearound the edges and to form the coin compartments 14 works very satisfactorily, other methods could also be employed. It would be possible, for example, to bond or glue said sheets or to secure them together in some other manner, and the invention is not tobe limited in this respect. It will similarly be apparent that while circular coin compartments are preferred, they might also be octagonal, ovoid, etc., and the specific geometric shape of said coin compartments is not critical to the invention.

Extending across the face of each coin compartment 14 is a straight, horizontal cut or slit 17 in the outer plastic sheet 11, said slit defining a lower compartment section or pocket 18 and upper section 19, and providing an opening through which a portion of a coin may be inserted into said lower pocket. As will be hereinafter described in greater detail, when a coin is seated within said pocket the upper portion of said coin projects thereabove and is positioned on the exterior of the material 11 forming the compartment upper section 19 (FIGS. 5 and 6).

One of the unique and important features of the present invention is that the pocket opening or slit 17 is located above the center point of the coin-holding compartment 14, as best appears in FIG. 3, rather than being formed on the diameter thereof. As a result, said slit 17 is slightly shorter than the diameter of the coin to be retained in the compartment and to insert a coin into the pocket 18 it is necessary to forcibly expand said opening, the resilient nature of the plastic material 11 permitting said opening to temporarily stretch and yield while the coin is being pushed therethrough and into the pocket 18, and

to then resume its original size. Because said slit 17 is of a smaller diameter than the coin said coin is partially surrounded and retained within said pocket 18 once it has been inserted thereimThe result is that the coin is securely held in place and will not fall out of the pocket 18 even when the book is inverted, or when it is dropped. This unique feature of the present invention, ie the forming of the slit or opening 17 above the center point of the coin compartment and slightly shorter than the diameter of the coin, is not possible with the conventional paperboard coin books. If a coin larger than the pocket opening were forced through said opening in a paperboard coin book said paperboard would tear or rupture and the pocket would not retain said coin.

In lieu of the straight pocket openings or slits 17 shown in the illustrated form of the invention said slits could also be arranged at an angle or curved upwardly or downwardly. The important thing is that the opposite ends of said slits are located above the center point of the circular compartments 14 and the distance between said slit ends is less than the diameter of the coins. The result is that the peripheral portion of each pocket 18 surrounds more than half of the periphery of a coin therein, thus retaining said coin within the pocket as described.

Another unique and important feature of the present invention, and referring now to FIG. 6 of the drawing, is that when a coin 2.0 is held in one of the coin-receiving compartments 14 the upper portion of said coin forcibly bears against the exterior of the plastic material 11 forming the upper section 19 of said compartment. Said plastic material is resilient, as described, and as the lower portion of the coin is held within the pocket 18 the engagement of the upper portion of said coin against the springlike material 19 produces an opposite force which functions to provide a tight, clamping action, thus ensuring the secure retention of the coin within said pocket.

In lieu of utilizing the resilient upper section 19 of the coin compartment as a spring to promote the tight retention of a coin in said compartment, as described, the plastic material 11 within each compartment upper section could be cut out and a small nub or boss formed in the face of the material therebehind to provide a comparable spring action'or a small segment of said material 11 could be employed for this purpose. If desired, the portion of each compartment located above the slit 17 need not be peripherally sealed to the backing, although at least spot sealing is desirable to prevent coins from inadvertently slipping loose between the cover 10 and liner 11.

As hereinabove mentioned, both the plastic cover 10 and inner sheet 11 forming the present book are flexible and to insert a coin 20 into one of the coin pockets 18 it is merely necessary for the user to bend said book back at a point adjacent the slit 17, as shown in FIG. 5. The pocket section 18 is thus exposed and the coin 20 can be readily lowered therein.

When a coin has been installed in one of the coin pockets 18 in the present invention said coin is securely retained therein, as hereinabove described, and will not accidentally fall out. When it is desired to remove the coins from the present book, however, it is unnecessary to tediously manually remove eachindividual coin from its pocket, as is required with conventional coin books.

To remove the coins from the .present book it is merely necessary to invert said book and sharply rap the lower edge thereof on the surface of a table and all of the coins will simultaneously fall out and onto the table, such a sharp blow being sufiicient to force the coins past the openings 17 and out of said pockets, the resiliency of the plastic material permitting said slits 17 to temporarily expand under force. The result is that with the present invention all of the coins can be removed from the book simultaneously and in an instant, thereby greatly reducing the work of the bank teller when said book is redeemed.

Ordinarily the sheet or liner 11 overlying the inner face of the present book is formed of a clear, transparent plastic in order to permit a view of the coins contained in the pockets 18, and numerical values are preferably imprinted on or adjacent said pockets to indicate a progressive total, as shown in FIG. 2 of the drawing. Other indicia or instructions can also be printed on said plastic material.

As mentioned, the coin book illustrated in the drawing is a dime book designed to hold a total of 30 dimes, or $3.00, but .it is to be understood that similar coin books adapted for quarters or other denominations are also possible within the scope of the present invention. With larger coins "such as quarters or nickels the coin compartments 14 must be correspondingly larger, of course, but otherwise the booklet can be similar in design and function to that illustrated and hereinabove described.

From the foregoing detailed description it will be seen that the novel coin saving booklet comprising the present invention has a number of advantages over conventional coin books. With the present book all of the coins therein can be instantly and simultaneously removed, thus eliminating the time-consuming and tedious chore of manually removing each individual coin from the filled book as is required with the coin saving books heretofore used. In addition, the present book is so designed that coin can be easily mounted therein by the user, and it is compact and can be conveniently carried on the person.

A further important advantage of the novel coin book comprising the present invention is that it can be formed entirely of plastic or similar relatively inexpensive material, and it is so constructed that it can be reused a greater number of times than prior coin books, particularly conventional paperboard coin books which are frequently torn or ruined after a short duration.

As hereinabove pointed out, it is to be understood that the present invention is not to be limited or confined to a coin saving booklet identical in all respects to that and flexible material overlying the inner face of said cover; means joining portions of said cover and inner sheet together; and a plurality of coin-receiving compartments formed by and between said cover and inner sheet, said inner sheet having openings extending across each of said coin-receiving compartments and defining a coin-holding pocket therebelow adapted to receive more than half of a coin inserted therein, the distance between the opposite ends of said openings in said resilient sheet being slightly less than the width of the coins to be projected therethrough but said openings being temporarily expandable to permit the insertion or removal of coins from said pockets, said openings resuming their original size after coins have been inserted in said pockets to yieldably retain the same therein.

2. A coin saving device as recited in claim 1 and wherein each of said coin-receiving compartments is formed by the joinder of said inner sheet to said cover in substantially the form of a ring, the inner diameter of said rings being slightly greater than the diameter of the coins to be received therein, and said pocket openings being located above the center points of said compartments.

3. The coin saving device recited in claim 2 and wherein the resilient nature of said inner sheet material permits said pocket openings to temporarily expand to permit coins to fall from said coin-holding pockets when said device is inverted and forcibly jarred, thereby eliminating the necessity for individually manually removing coins from said device.

4. The coin saving device recited in claim 2 wherein said cover and innner sheet members are joined around their marginal edges, wherein a center fold line is provided to permit said device to be folded over upon itself to a closed position, and wherein said closed device is relatively flat and compact.

5. The coin saving device recited in claim 2 wherein said cover is formed of a flexible material and wherein said cover and inner sheet members can be manually temporarily bent back at a point adjacent one of said pocket openings to expose said opening and facilitate the insertion of a coin into the pocket.

6. The coin saving device recited in claim 2 wherein each of said coin compartments is provided with yieldable resilient means above said coin-holding pocket adapted to push outwardly on the upper portion of a coin in said pocket, said resilient means and pocket providing oppositely-directed forces designed to tightly retain a coin in said pocket.

7. The coin saving booklet recited in claim 6 wherein the inner sheet material forming the upper section of said coin compartments functions as said resilient means, the upper portion of a coin bearing against the exterior surface of said compartment upper section when the lower portion of said coin is positioned in one of said pockets.

8. The coin saving device recited in claim 2 wherein said cover and inner sheet members are formed of plastic and are heat fused together along their marginal edges, and substantially around said coin-receiving compartments.

9. The coin saving device recited in claim 8 wherein said inner sheet is formed of a clear, transparent material, and wherein numerical indicia are printed thereon.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 729,429 5/ 1903 Shattuc. 823,817 6/1906 Stack. 1,827,888 10/1931 Greer 229-929 X 3,052,256 5/ 1962 Overfors 229-929 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,127,846 4/1962 Germany.

JOSEPH R. LECLAIR, Primary Examiner. THERON E. CONDON, Examiner. J. M. CASKIE, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A COIN SAVING DEVICE, COMPRISING: A COVER HAVING AN OUTER FACE AND AN INNER FACE; AN INNER SHEET OF RESILIENT AND FLEXIBLE MATERIAL OVERLYING THE INNER FACE OF SAID COVER; MEANS JOINING PORTIONS OF SAID COVER AND INNER SHEET TOGETHER; AND A PLURALITY OF COIN-RECEIVING COMPARTMENTS FORMED BY AND BETWEEN SAID COVER AND INNER SHEET, SAID INENR SHEET HAVING OPENINGS EXTENDING ACROSS EACH OF SAID COIN-RECEIVING COMPARTMENTS AND DEFINING A COIN-HOLDING POCKET THEREBELOW ADAPTED TO RECEIVE MORE THAN HALF OF A COIN INSERTED THEREIN, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE OPPOSITE ENDS OF SAID OPENINGS IN SAID RESILIENT SHEET BEING SLIGHTLY LESS THATN THE WIDTH OF THE COINS TO BE PROJECTED THERETHROUGH BUT SAID OPENINGS BEING TEMPORARILY EXPANDABLE TO PERMIT THE INSERTION OR REMOVAL OF COINS FROM SAID POCKETS, SAID OPENINGS RESUMING THEIR ORIGINAL SIZE AFTER COINS HAVE BEEN INSERTED IN SAID POCKETS TO YIELDABLY RETAIN THE SAME THEREIN. 